Author's note: All usual disclaimers apply.
"You had no right to tell your sister I'd be there."
Detective Inspector Tommy Lynley ran his hand through his hair. He knew his irascible sergeant was right but that did not change the fact that he needed her to agree. "I know. I'm sorry Barbara but I was pushed into a corner."
"How?" Havers demanded angrily. Barbara was sick of her boss using her to deflect his mother. She had attended one function at Howenstowe not long after he had returned to work after his wife Helen's death, and now every time his mother tried to get him circulating socially Tommy tried to use her as the excuse. Either date me properly or not at all!
"Mother kept reeling off a list of suitable escorts and I couldn't bear the thought of that so I just blurted it out."
She eyed him suspiciously. "Just blurted what out exactly?"
Tommy looked everywhere around his office but at her. "I said that I had invited you and you were delighted to come."
Barbara fumed at his presumption. At least the other times he had hinted or asked her first. "Well I'm not delighted Sir and I'm not going. I'll ring Judith and explain that the mighty Lord Asherton had made some erroneous assumptions, like he often does, about my availability and willingness to say how high when he says jump, and that I will not be accompanying you to her wedding. Does that sound polite enough or should I just ring and tell her that her brother is an arrogant so and so who thought that a weekend in Sweden would be something I'd jump at."
"Switzerland," he corrected her, "the ceremony is in Zermatt."
"I don't care if it's in the mat, on the mat or under the mat! I. Am. Not. Going!" Despite the circumstances Tommy laughed and was soon rebuked. "What's so bloody funny?"
"Your mat joke. It was quite witty."
"I'm glad I amuse you. It will give you something to chortle about when you sit around the fire in your moon boots sipping cognac talking about how 'absolutely brill' the slopes were today!"
"Moon boots? Don't be absurd Barbara. They went out as après ski wear in the nineties! Besides I do not chortle and we're going for a wedding not a ski weekend. It's August for heaven's sake."
"They ski all year in Switzerland. I'm sure you will find time to hurtle down a hill trying to break your precious neck."
"Then come with me and save me from risking life and limb."
"No! N. O!"
"Why don't you sleep on it and we can talk about it tomorrow?"
She shook her head. "You just don't get it do you? No! Period. Full stop. End of argument." Barbara stormed from his office and slammed the door. Tommy stood and walked around his desk wondering what to do. He kicked the waste paper bin across the floor. It clattered against the wall and Tommy swore. He had scuffed his best brogues.
It was nearly nine o'clock that evening before he tracked her down. She was with Stuart Lafferty at the Golden Duck. Tommy hated that pub with it's plastic and vinyl new age furniture and annoying lounge music. It was not Barbara's style either so he knew she was avoiding him. She sat facing away from the door and he was able to sit beside her before she noticed. He exchanged pleasantries with Stuart who, sensing tension, quickly excused himself leaving them to talk.
"I haven't changed my mind if that's why you're here."
"No," he sighed, "I came to apologise."
"Okay."
"What?"
"You can start whenever you're ready." She secretly liked this part of their arguments when Tommy was wrong. She liked to make him squirm just enough to make him uncomfortable but not too much to make him too proud to speak.
"I'm sorry I told Mother you would come before I asked you and I'm sorry I used you to avoid family issues."
"Accepted. Do you fancy a pint?"
"I'll get it," he said. He returned with two and they clinked glasses before he took a sip. It was impossible these days for them to remain angry for more than a few hours. "Would you have come if I had asked you properly?"
Barbara avoided his eyes knowing that if he gave her that special look of his and a smile she would give in. "Maybe. One day you'll ask instead of ordering me and then we'll know how I would react."
"Will you come with me?"
She looked at him. "No."
Tommy sighed and for the next hour they talked about their cases. It was easy conversation and Tommy was relieved that she had lost her anger toward him. He did not like arguing with her but it had been part of their relationship from the start and would no doubt remain so. He drove her home to save her the Tube trip and as she went to get out of the car he chanced his hand again. "Barbara, Judith is being married in two weeks in a lovely village in Switzerland. The family are spending five days there in a house. I would like it very much if you accompanied me as my friend and guest which means I insist on paying for the fares and the accommodation. Hillier will give us the leave if I ask. This has nothing to do with Mother or duty. I want you to share the weekend with me. Will you accompany me please Barbara?"
"Yes." Barbara got out of the car and shut the door and marched towards her flat wondering what she had just done. She had agreed simply because he had learned to ask nicely and she wanted to reward him. He's not a Labrador that's just retrieved his first stick! Shaking her head she let herself inside. She sank back against the door and swore. He had given her 'that look' and she had given in without a fight.
Tommy was still recovering from the shock. He had not expected that technique to work so easily. He must learn to ask her things more often. He had meant it though; he wanted to show her Zermatt and enjoy spending time in the mountains that he had always found romantic. An image of kissing her on the Gornergrat terrace overlooking the Matterhorn flashed through his mind. Smiling and chuckling to himself he drove home.
Two weeks later Barbara looked out of the plane's window as they were coming in to land at Geneva. Tommy sat cheerily in the aisle seat and smiled at her. "Cheer up Barbara, you'll enjoy yourself."
"I should have said I don't have a passport," she grumbled. She dreaded the next few days. His family were always friendly and kind but Barbara still feared she would do or say something to embarrass Tommy. It was important to her that he retained his good opinion of her. They still argued but it seemed different now, almost as if it was part of a ritual. They had become closer friends with each passing year and she did not want to endanger that in any way.
"And I'd have known you were lying. I certified your passport photo last year remember?"
His smile was broad and friendly and Barbara nodded then smiled back. Although she dreaded the weekend in one way, in another way it was exciting. She had never been to Switzerland before. "How long after we land?"
Tommy tried to share the armrest between their seats but their hands accidentally brushed and he pulled away. "About three and a half to four hours. We catch a train at the airport to go to Visp then change for Zermatt. It's a very pretty trip."
"Through the mountains?" The journey sounded much longer than she had expected which was good as she would have to spend less time being sociable with the family.
"Partly but also along the lake."
They sat in silence for most of the flight. Now that she was actually here Tommy wondered why it had been so important to him. He could easily have told Judith the truth and she would have helped with his Mother but he had wanted Barbara to come along. He was becoming dependent on seeing her everyday and on the days he did not see her he thought about when he would see her again. Since she had agreed to come he had thought about nothing more than spending time with her showing her the sights. He rationalized it by convincing himself that it was because she had never been here before but he knew it was much more. His mental images had extended to kissing her on the hiking trails of Rothorn, by the river, on the cable car to the glacier; in fact his list was quite expansive. He wanted to spend everyday of his life with her and it was a dangerous thought. Tommy had no idea if Barbara shared any of his feelings. She was always quietly in control and her soft smiles could easily be just that of a close friend.
The transition from plane to train was fast with politely efficient immigration and a rapid baggage system. The sleek red and white train looked fast and Barbara feared the countryside would pass in a blur. She settled comfortably into the window seat on the right side of the train which Tommy had insisted would offer better views. Tommy had insisted on first class seats, something Barbara thought was unnecessary but as she had agreed to come as his guest she had not demurred. The seats were plush with a grey, velvety upholstery and had a back that curved around and seemed to cocoon her. There very few other passengers but as the train waited three minutes at Geneva's main station Barbara watched with amusement as a large lady carefully spread a blanket over a seat. She then whistled and a large, woolly dog came bounding into the carriage and jumped up onto the blanket and sat contentedly looking out the window.
As the train swept through the suburbs Barbara admired the different architecture and feel of the country. It was very different to England with its historic terrace houses interspersed with modern, bold buildings and blandly practical apartment blocks that looked planned and ordered unlike the haphazard development of London. The view of Geneva was too hurried to see much but as the train ran along the lake the views became captivating. Tommy leant forward in his seat and turned to the window so that he could point out the cloud-covered Mont Blanc and the French side of the lake. The train swept passed small towns and villages but after Lausanne the scenery became more rural. The shimmering lake was close to the track and stretched up the hills as far as the eye could see were vineyards. The breezes wafted across the neat lines of vines making the leaves sway and dip in synch with the lapping waves of the lake. "It's beautiful," Barbara repeated for about the fiftieth time making Tommy smile.
"It's even more spectacular from the water. There's a scenic ferry from Montreux. Perhaps we can catch that on the way back if we leave enough time."
"I'd like that," she said as she turned and smiled at him. Barbara was relaxing. He could tell she was enjoying her trip so far and he vowed they would have an argument free weekend.
Tommy smiled back and as they approached Vevey he told her about the railways that zigzagged dramatically up the steep mountains that had replaced the gentler lakeside hills. He told her of the cheese making villages and the mountain chocolatiers. "I'll bring you back one day and we can go up. I think you'd like it."
Barbara thought about the chocolate. "I would," she replied before she realised what he had implied. Tommy had actually suggested they could holiday together. She blushed and felt her face get hotter as he looked at her and grinned with that doe-eyed expression that was so endearing. Thankfully he was completely oblivious to the way she felt about him but she needed to do a better job of hiding it this weekend or someone would notice.
Tommy continued to talk but Barbara was not entirely focused. She was imagining what it would be like to spend time alone with Tommy when they were not working or visiting his family. Would they have anything to talk about? Their world was work. Other than that they had nothing in common. Suddenly she was sad and disconnected.
"What's wrong?" Tommy noticed the change in Barbara's face and demeanour.
"Oh, sorry. Nothing really. What were you saying?"
"The Chateau de Chillon is coming up. It is a classic styled castle on an island just off shore. 'There are seven pillars of Gothic mould, in Chillon's dungeons deep and old'."
"What?"
"Lord Bryon, he wrote a poem about an imprisoned monk called 'The Prisoner of Chillon' set in the castle."
"Of course." Barbara smiled tightly. It reinforced her thoughts. We live in different worlds.
The castle disappeared quickly as the train sped by. It was quaint and mystical and reminded her of the Disneyland castle, an observation that when she mentioned to Tommy he rebutted with factual arguments that missed her point. Barbara sighed. She had been deluding herself. This was going to be a very long five days.